Montclair council looks to roll back historic preservation rules

By Dan Prochilo

STAFF WRITER |

The Montclair Times

Some of the rules governing historic properties in Montclair have changed in ways that could cut through red tape for property owners and real-estate developers, but also undermine the authority of the municipal Historic Preservation Commission.

The Georgian Inn on North Mountain Avenue is among Montclair's historic landmarks. The Township Council could make some big changes to the regulations for historic properties.

Among the major changes: the Township Council has effectively repealed a demolition-review provision designed to impede and possibly halt the razing of old buildings in Montclair.

Previously, whenever a developer applied for a demolition permit of a structure 75-plus years old, the permit was to be deferred until the Historic Preservation Commission (HPC) could investigate the history of the building, analyze its architectural features and consider whether it should be an official, protected historic landmark. Such a designation makes a structure much harder to tear down.

The council put an end to that practice, which Planning Director Janice Talley said is out of sync with the state Municipal Land Use Law (MLUL).

Under the state’s "time of application" rule, whatever zoning laws are in effect when a property owner files a redevelopment application or tries obtaining a demolition permit, those laws apply to the landowner’s proposal; they cannot suddenly be changed midstream, Talley explained. In other words, a property’s status cannot be abruptly switched to "historic" while a developer’s application is pending, said the planning director.

The HPC must figure out which properties are historic and declare them landmarks beforehand, she said.

The revised ordinance also alters which cases the HPC has jurisdiction over. In the past, any construction project that would impact the façade of a historic site or a property within a historic district needed a "certificate of appropriateness" from the HPC before it could proceed.

That changed under the 30-page amended ordinance, which municipal officials had been crafting for more than a year and which the Township Council unanimously approved Tuesday.

Now any proposal for a historic structure that has to be heard by the Board of Adjustment or the Planning Board will not also need a separate approval from the HPC. The other boards would have the power to ratify those projects on their own, while the HPC would just advise them.

"The ultimate authority, in terms of making the decision and granting the approval, is with the Planning Board and the Zoning Board (of Adjustment)," Talley pointed out.

She said the change would prevent projects from being ping-ponged back and forth between boards. At times, when both governing bodies had to sign off independently, each of them would give developers contradictory instructions.

"Sometimes the approvals conflicted, and then you would be bounced from board to board," said the director. "If the HPC told me to put this light here and this plant here, and the Planning Board had different requirements, which one goes? Who trumps who?"

The state MLUL calls for there to be a single "approving board," she said.

In another change to the regulations, some land-use applications considered to be "minor," such as requests to change signs or awnings on businesses in historic zones, could be handled administratively by members of the Planning Department and would not require a hearing before the HPC.

The new ordinance was referred by the council to the Planning Board, which reviewed it on Monday night and recommended that the council institute it.

Montclair council looks to roll back historic preservation rules

By Dan Prochilo

STAFF WRITER |

The Montclair Times

Some of the rules governing historic properties in Montclair have changed in ways that could cut through red tape for property owners and real-estate developers, but also undermine the authority of the municipal Historic Preservation Commission.

The Georgian Inn on North Mountain Avenue is among Montclair's historic landmarks. The Township Council could make some big changes to the regulations for historic properties.

Among the major changes: the Township Council has effectively repealed a demolition-review provision designed to impede and possibly halt the razing of old buildings in Montclair.

Previously, whenever a developer applied for a demolition permit of a structure 75-plus years old, the permit was to be deferred until the Historic Preservation Commission (HPC) could investigate the history of the building, analyze its architectural features and consider whether it should be an official, protected historic landmark. Such a designation makes a structure much harder to tear down.

The council put an end to that practice, which Planning Director Janice Talley said is out of sync with the state Municipal Land Use Law (MLUL).

Under the state’s "time of application" rule, whatever zoning laws are in effect when a property owner files a redevelopment application or tries obtaining a demolition permit, those laws apply to the landowner’s proposal; they cannot suddenly be changed midstream, Talley explained. In other words, a property’s status cannot be abruptly switched to "historic" while a developer’s application is pending, said the planning director.

The HPC must figure out which properties are historic and declare them landmarks beforehand, she said.

The revised ordinance also alters which cases the HPC has jurisdiction over. In the past, any construction project that would impact the façade of a historic site or a property within a historic district needed a "certificate of appropriateness" from the HPC before it could proceed.

That changed under the 30-page amended ordinance, which municipal officials had been crafting for more than a year and which the Township Council unanimously approved Tuesday.

Now any proposal for a historic structure that has to be heard by the Board of Adjustment or the Planning Board will not also need a separate approval from the HPC. The other boards would have the power to ratify those projects on their own, while the HPC would just advise them.

"The ultimate authority, in terms of making the decision and granting the approval, is with the Planning Board and the Zoning Board (of Adjustment)," Talley pointed out.

She said the change would prevent projects from being ping-ponged back and forth between boards. At times, when both governing bodies had to sign off independently, each of them would give developers contradictory instructions.

"Sometimes the approvals conflicted, and then you would be bounced from board to board," said the director. "If the HPC told me to put this light here and this plant here, and the Planning Board had different requirements, which one goes? Who trumps who?"

The state MLUL calls for there to be a single "approving board," she said.

In another change to the regulations, some land-use applications considered to be "minor," such as requests to change signs or awnings on businesses in historic zones, could be handled administratively by members of the Planning Department and would not require a hearing before the HPC.

The new ordinance was referred by the council to the Planning Board, which reviewed it on Monday night and recommended that the council institute it.